Preserving the biodiversity of food plant
Biodiversity doesn’t find expression only in the number of different plant species, but also in the diversity found in a single species.
Think of all the varieties of apples we’re familiar with and whose distinctive flavors we enjoy. How can we protect this extraordinary diversity? That diversity could serve to develop new varieties resistant to the diseases and pests that threaten our crops. The accompanying texts in the Tropical Food Plants Greenhouse raise these questions by using the case of the banana tree.
Powerful economic drivers
Food plants are found at the heart of the economy of a number of producing tropical countries. The gathering or harvest, along with the processing of all these foods, generate hundreds of thousand of jobs and affect billions of people.
Certain plants, like rice or manioc, are the staple food of many populations: their production is essential to survival. Others, like coffee or cacao, play a decisive economic role, as these are popular export products, in great demand on every continent.
There are also fruits, like bananas and mangoes, produced in massive quantities in order to meet growing needs in the four corners of the planet. The information conveyed in the greenhouse pays special attention to plants like sugar cane and the date palm, whose production has important repercussions on the environment.
